Tennessee school removes gender-neutral pronouns from site

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The University of Tennessee says references to the use of gender-neutral pronouns such as "ze" are being removed from a school website.

UT President Joe DiPietro sent a message to university trustees on Friday saying references to gender-neutral pronouns will be removed from the school's Office for Diversity and Inclusion website, multiple media outlets reported.

The Office for Diversity and Inclusion had asked students and faculty to use the pronouns in order to create a more inclusive campus. Officials had said the suggestion was aimed to be welcoming of the transgender population and "people who do not identify within the gender binary."

DiPietro met with members of the Knoxville legislative delegation on Friday. Lawmakers say they are glad the university responded but are still taking a wait-and-see approach.